Sunday, January 31, members of the Man of Order and Discipline (MOD), Lagos State Command, a paramilitary organisation in the Catholic Church, exhibited vigour, resilience and style during the celebration of the 2016 Founder’s Day of the organisation.
The group, comprising men and women, boys and girls from various catholic deanery and parishes engaged in all kinds of displays typical of the armed forces at the expansive open ground of St Patrick’s Catholic Church, Ojo Alaba, in Ojo Local Government Area of Lagos State. Their wonderful display received thunderous applause from the audience in the hot sun.
Speaking at the event, the MOD Chaplain Lagos State and Priest of St Charles Catholic Church, Olodi-Apapa Lagos, Rev. Monsignor Anthony Bbabtunde Erinle, said the celebration helps remind all and remember to celebrate the life and work of the founding father, Very Rev. Monsignor Okee Patrick Achebe.
In his speech titled ‘On A Day Like This’, the Catholic Priest said: “We come to remind ourselves of the source and origin of Man of Order and Discipline (MOD) Movement in Nigeria. We come to celebrate our unity and oneness of movement in the Archdioceses of Lagos; we come to reflect on our commitment as members of the movement, and match forward.”
He added, “On day like this I want to remind us of a part of the aims and objectives, which says, to eradicate social ills like irresponsibility and untrustworthiness in assignments, bad company, idleness, tricks, intemperance, deceits, dishonesty, disobedience, stealing, cheating, sexual laxity and permissiveness, drug addiction, ignobility of character and all forms of indiscipline.”
The Chairman/General Officer Commanding, Lagos State Command of the organisation, MOD-Major Anthony Ezeokoye, commended the members for their resilience and tacit, saying that the group has made meaningful impact on the Catholic Church that cannot be ignored.
He said, “MOD has been able to fill the gap created by the unfortunate disconnect between the family and right thoughts, speech and deed. The formation of the human consists of the spirit, soul and body. The family gives birth to the society, what is the quality of people coming from the society. There are no family values anymore and the only thing that seem to be standing is the church.”
“The church must go beyond preaching the gospel and look at that aspect of order and discipline. The values that make us who we are have been relegated to the background, and that is where the MOD comes in as the recipe. MOD represents order and discipline, and if you are able to inculcate that into an individual, and he or she is able to regulate his passion, desires and channel them positively towards human development, then that individual will make a difference even in the face in the chaos. That is the impact of the MOD in the church today,” he added.
